Lefse Records

Thank Alan Palomo for not taking acid. If he had, then Neon Indian, the lo-fi pop duo consisting of the VEGA lead singer and Brooklyn-based video artist, Alicia Scardetta, would never have come to fruition. Started with the song, “Should Have Taken Acid With You” — which Palomo had written as a humorous apology to Scardetta after their plans on taking LSD together fell through — the project soon manifested itself into a full-fledged multimedia collaboration. Hazy lyrics and synth sequences give songs like “Terminally Chill” and “Mind, Drips” a sound reminiscent of lazy, strung-out summer days. With the debut LP Psychic Chasms out this week and gigs lined up through January, the ambitious 21-year-old took some time out of his busy schedule to speak with PLANET° about blogs, Ecco the Dolphin, and a heated exchange with a similar “Neon” band.

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Photography by Guillaume Herbaut

In the Ukraine, a country where females are victims of sexual trafficking and gender oppression, a new tribe of empowered women is emerging. Calling themselves the “Asgarda”, the women seek complete autonomy from men. Residing in the Carpathian Mountains, the tribe is comprised of 150 women of varying ages, primarily students, led by 30 year-old Katerina Tarnouska. Reviving the tribal traditions of the Scythian Amazons of ancient Greek mythology, the Asgarda train in martial arts, taught by former Soviet karate master, Volodymyr Stepanovytch, and learn life skills and sciences in order to become ideal women. Little physical documentation existed on the tribe, until recently, when renowned French photographer, Guillaume Herbaut, met the Asgarda back in 2004 in the midst of the Orange Revolution.
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Photography by Dustin Thompson

Coming a long way since the days of the taco truck, the LA mobile food movement has evolved to encompass everything from Vietnamese and veggie hot dogs to Korean BBQ and architecturally influenced ice cream sandwiches. And now, sushi. Fishlips Sushi — LA’s first fresh sushi truck — may just be the culinary zenith of the food truck world. Operated by three seasoned sushi chefs, the truck offers top quality, highly affordable, made-to-order sushi inspired by the sushi carts of ancient Japan. The surprisingly vast menu features temari — little balls of rice topped with fish. All rolls emanate from one of four bases — California, spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, vegetable — to produce innovative selections like the Long Beach and signature Fish Lips roll. With fish coming straight from distributors and everything made from scratch, the truck delivers sushi on par with that of top-notch competitors at a street food price. To top it all off, orders are nicely garnished, neatly packaged, and graciously served, making for the perfect “fast-food” alternative for health-conscious and convenience-oriented Los Angelenos.

If in Los Angeles, you can track Fishlips’ location via their website and Twitter to find when it’s coming to a location near you: http://www.fishlips-sushi.com

Dark Night of the Soul – the first collaboration and installation between Danger Mouse, Sparklehorse, and David Lynch – explores the idea of collective introspection. Now showing at the Michael Kohn Gallery in Los Angeles, the exhibit consists of a two-room installation streaming the album written by Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse, accompanied by photos taken by Lynch. Inspired by the album, Lynch’s photo sets read like mini-storyboards, and resemble a series of film stills. The album features guest vocalists The Flaming Lips, Gruff Rhys of The Super Furry Animals, Grandaddy’s Jason Lytle, Julian Casablancas of The Strokes, Frank Black of The Pixies, Iggy Pop, James Mercer of The Shins, Nina Persson of The Cardigans, Suzanne Vega, and Vic Chesnutt. The interplay between music and visuals in Dark Night of the Soul heighten and confuse the sensory experience, creating a myriad of emotions and responses.
     Hauntingly beautiful and grotesque, poignant and sometimes comical images accompany lyrics about revenge, war, pain, loss and hallucinatory states. From the opening track, The Flaming Lips’ “Revenge”, to David Lynch’s “Dark Night of the Soul”, we are taken on a disturbing and cerebral journey, one that moves increasingly from the tangible to the surreal. Each track is accompanied by a set of three or four images, which individually and collectively tell a story.
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